Holding device and method for detecting a vehicle environment with at least one camera

ABSTRACT

A holding fixture for a camera and a method for monitoring the surrounding area of a vehicle, using at least one camera, which is used to draw a holding fixture out of the body shell of a vehicle, as needed. The holding fixture is extended as a function of a speed signal or a transmission-setting signal, and, in addition to a camera, the holding fixture has a further device, in particular a washer device or a trunk handle. Furthermore, the holding fixture can be drawn out as a function of a signal from a control element. Holding fixtures having cameras can be attached at various positions of the vehicle.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a holding fixture and a method formonitoring the surrounding area of a vehicle, using at least one camera.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Parking assistance systems for monitoring the surrounding area of avehicle are known, which use, on one hand, radar, and on the other hand,ultrasonic sensors. In addition, the use of cameras is known formonitoring the surrounding area of a vehicle, the cameras occupying afixed position in the vehicle, and furthermore, the position beingselected so that the camera does not have any optically non-transparentobstacles in its field of view, due to the vehicle.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In contrast, the holding fixture of the present invention, and themethod of the present invention for monitoring the surrounding area of avehicle, using at least one camera, have the advantage that, because thecamera can be drawn out by the holding fixture of the present invention,an optimum monitoring position is selected on the vehicle for monitoringthe surrounding area of the vehicle, without effecting the vehicledesign itself. In the retracted state, the holding fixtureadvantageously disappears in the body shell of the vehicle. In thiscontext, it is also advantageous that the at least one camera isprotected from soiling, when it is not needed.

In addition to a camera, it is particularly advantageous that theholding fixture of the present invention accommodates a further device,which allows the overall outlay to be reduced. Such an additional devicecan be, on one hand, a trunk handle and, on the other hand, a washerdevice, each of which can likewise be drawn out on the vehicle. Thisadvantageously allows the camera to be mounted in a very simple manner.

Furthermore, it is advantageous that the holding fixture of the presentinvention is automatically extended as a function of a speed signal; inthis case, the holding fixture only being drawn out at low speeds thatespecially occur during a parking maneuver, and in this instance, thecamera is on the holding fixture.

In addition, it is advantageous that the holding apparatus of thepresent invention is drawn out as a function of a transmission-settingsignal. Consequently, the holding fixture is particularly drawn out inresponse to shifting into reverse or first gear. These two gears of avehicle gearshift mechanism are used in parking or leaving a parkingspace. Consequently, the driver is automatically offered this additionalhelp for monitoring the surrounding area of a vehicle. This decidedlyincreases the safety while parking. In this context, it is particularlyadvantageous that signals from the camera are only displayed in thetravel direction, so that the driver is only provided with informationthat he or she needs for steering.

Furthermore, it is advantageous that the holding fixture of the presentinvention can be drawn out, using a control element that the driveroperates. Consequently, in a case where the driver needs the camera tomonitor the vehicle surroundings, but this does not occur automatically,it is possible for him to initiate this himself, using the operatingdevice. Thus, the holding fixture of the present invention is at thedisposal of the driver in all situations.

In addition, it is advantageous that the holding fixture of the presentinvention is placed at the roof edge or the trunk edge of the vehicle,thereby allowing a good view, which is very useful for detectingapproaching persons and monitoring the further surroundings, especiallywhen backing into a parking space. This decidedly increases the safetyof the device according to the present invention.

In addition, it is advantageous that the holding fixture of the presentinvention is simultaneously placed at various positions of the vehicle,so that a driver is ensured that the surrounding area of the vehicle ismonitored in a comprehensive manner, the driver being able to controlthe monitoring of the vehicle surroundings as needed, using the camera.

Furthermore, it is advantageous for a camera to be integrated in theemblem of a vehicle manufacturer, whereby the emblem is situated on thetrunk lid of the vehicle. The advantage resulting from this is that theemblem hides the edges of the extendable or collapsible holding fixture.In addition, the camera position is relatively high, thereby resultingin excellent monitoring of the vehicle surroundings.

Furthermore, it is advantageous that the holding fixture of the presentinvention is simultaneously drawn out at both the front and rear ends ofthe vehicle, and that a display then occurs as a function of thedirection of travel, in order to supply the driver with information.This decidedly increases driving safety, especially when parking inparking spaces.

Furthermore, it is advantageous that the holding fixture of the presentinvention is only moved out in response to shifting into reverse, andindeed, in both the forward and reverse directions. The holding fixtureis then either retracted in response to shifting into a forward gear,and possibly in response to a predefined speed value being exceeded.This increases the probability that the holding fixture is only drawnout during parking maneuvers, which by far represent the most frequentuse of the cameras. Thus, the occurrences of uselessly extending theholding fixture of the present invention are reduced.

Finally, it is also advantageous that the holding fixture of the presentinvention is extended while driving backwards, and brought in whiledriving forwards. Consequently, only the reverse gear is used as acondition for monitoring the vehicle surroundings, using at least onecamera.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a rear view of a vehicle.

FIG. 2 shows the extended holding fixture of the present invention, atthe rear end of the vehicle.

FIG. 3 shows the view of a vehicle front end.

FIG. 4 shows the bird's-eye view of the vehicle, having a holdingapparatus of the present invention extending from the vehicle front end.

FIG. 5 shows a flow chart of a first method according to the presentinvention.

FIG. 6 shows a flow chart of a second method according to the presentinvention.

FIG. 7 shows a block diagram of a display device that uses a camera.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the case of introducing cameras or video sensors for monitoring thesurrounding area of a vehicle, it is crucial how these sensors arepositioned. In this context, the optical view into the area to bemonitored is free, simple mounting is possible, the costs are low, andthe design is optically attractive.

Only a few advantageous positions on a vehicle are useful for making dowith as few cameras or video sensors as possible and, in so doing, stillensuring optimum monitoring of the vehicle surroundings. These positionsare situated as centrally as possible, at points high up on the vehicle,e.g. the roof edge, the trunk lid, the rear window, and the hood.Therefore, the present invention provides for the camera or videosensors being installed at optimum monitoring positions, using anextendable holding fixture, without having a negative influence on thevehicle design. In this context, the camera lens is also protected fromsoiling in normal vehicle operation. Cost-effective integration into thevehicle is rendered possible by the combination with elements present inthe vehicle. Therefore, the holding fixture of the present invention isdesigned to be extendable as a function of driving situations.

The rear view of a vehicle is represented in FIG. 1, the holding fixtureof the present invention being integrated into the vehicle rear end.FIG. 1 represents the view of a rear window 1, along with tail lights 2.A holding fixture of the present invention, which is for mounting acamera, is mounted in support 3, which is provided for accommodatingboth a trunk handle and license-plate illumination. In this case,holding fixture 4 of the present invention is centrally mounted at therear end of the vehicle. This allows an optimum field of view for thecamera, which is situated on holding fixture 4. In this instance, thecamera is advantageously together with the trunk handle, on holdingfixture 4. It is alternatively possible for holding fixture 4 to onlysupport the camera.

Schematically represented in FIG. 2 is a side view of the vehicle,showing extended holding fixture 4 of the present invention at the rearend of the vehicle. In this context, holding fixture 4 is attached tothe vehicle in such a manner, that the holding fixture the field of viewdescribed by the coverage angle between dashed lines 6. Consequently,bumper 5 of the vehicle and the lower, rearward space behind the vehicleare in the field of view of the camera, as an aid for orientation.

A front view of the vehicle is represented in FIG. 3, the holdingfixture of the present invention being positioned in the vehicle frontend. A support 9, which is intended for a washer system, is situatedbetween headlights 7 and 8. And now, support 9 also has the holdingfixture for the camera itself. In this context, the extendable holdingfixture, which is moved out by electric motors, can be controlled by aprocessor of the vehicle. The holding fixture can alternatively befolded out.

In this case, the holding fixture therefore has the camera as well asthe wiper device. As an alternative, it is also possible here toseparately attach each of the holding fixtures for the wiper system andthe camera, to support 9. The cameras are robust and installed in awater-tight manner, where a casing, sealing, or a seal can be provided.

FIG. 4 represents a bird's-eye view of the vehicle, with holding fixture9 extending from the vehicle front end. The camera or video transmitteron holding fixture 9 is positioned and designed to have, as a field ofview, an angular coverage defined by the two lines 10. In this context,the front end of the vehicle is used as an aid for orientation. However,other coverage angles are alternatively possible, depending on thedesign and placement of the camera or video sensor. For example, thefront bumper of the vehicle can be used as an aid for orientation. Inplacing the holding fixture in the front end of the vehicle, it ispossible to either use just one holding fixture together with a wiperdevice, or to mount a holding fixture for a camera in both supports. Theholding fixture can also be positioned separately from the wiper device,and indeed, in the center of the vehicle front end, in order to ensure abetter monitoring point for the extendable camera, and to provideseparation from the wiper device, which can create problems for thecamera lens system and the electronics.

The holding fixtures of the present invention can be mounted in thevehicle front end and the vehicle rear end in combination, or also justmounted in the vehicle rear end, since the rear view of a vehicleespecially involves a potential danger for a driver. In this context,the holding fixture of the present invention is attached so as todisappear in the body shell of the vehicle in the retracted state.

Represented in FIG. 5 is a flow chart for a first method according tothe present invention. The position of the vehicle transmission isdetermined in method step 30. Therefore, the transmission-setting signalis checked. In method step 31, it is checked whether or not the reversegear is engaged. If this is the case, then it is checked in method step32, if the camera or cameras, if a plurality is present, have alreadybeen drawn out. If the cameras are extended and the reverse gear isengaged, then method step 30 is repeated to monitor the surrounding areaof the vehicle, e.g. in the case of parking or leaving a parking space.If the camera or cameras is or are not extended, then the camera orcameras is or are drawn out in method step 33, whereupon method step 30is repeated.

Is it is determined in method step 31, that the reverse gear is notengaged, then it is checked in method step 34, if the camera or camerasis or are already extended. If this is not the case, then method step 30is repeated. However, if the camera or cameras is or are already drawnout, then the speed of the vehicle is determined in method step 35, and,in method step 36, the speed is then compared to a threshold value.

The threshold value is preselected in such a manner, that the failure toattain the threshold value suggests a parking situation or a situationin which a parking space is being vacated, and thus anticipates, at ahigh probability, that camera is to extended during forward travel.Therefore, a transgression of the threshold value suggests normalforward driving or a rapid parking or vacating maneuver, both of whichdo not appear to necessitate the use of drawn-out cameras. Therefore,step 30 is repeated, i.e. the cameras remain extended when the thresholdvalue is not attained, and, when the threshold value is exceeded, eachextended camera's holding fixture according to the present invention isretracted again in method step 37. Method step 30 is repeated aftermethod step 37, i.e. the method begins again. The method is implementedcontinuously in order, on one hand, to automatically check whether thecameras are to extended and, on the other hand, to only leave thecameras extended for as long as is necessary.

FIG. 6 represents a flow chart of a second method according to thepresent invention, for monitoring the surrounding area of a vehicle. Thetransmission-setting signal is detected in method step 38. In methodstep 39, it is checked whether or not the reverse gear is engaged. Ifthe reverse gear is engaged, then it is checked in method step 40, ifthe camera or cameras is or are already extended. If this is the case,then method step 38 is repeated, since the cameras are moved out forrearward monitoring of the vehicle surroundings. But if the cameras arenot extended, then the present invention's holding fixtures for thecameras at hand are drawn out in method step 41, in order to then returnto method step 38.

If it is determined in method step 39, that the reverse gear is notengaged, then it is checked in method step 42, whether or not thecameras at hand have been moved out by the holding fixture of thepresent invention. If the cameras at hand are already extended, then thecameras at hand are retracted in method step 43, since, in this methodof the present invention, cameras are only used for rearward monitoringof the vehicle surroundings. Method step 38 is repeated after methodstep 43. If it was determined in method step 42, that the cameras arealready retracted, then method step 38 is repeated.

FIG. 7 represents a block diagram of a monitoring device in a vehicle. Acamera 17 is placed on a holding fixture 16 of the present invention.Camera 17 is connected to processor 18, via a first data input/output ofa processor 18. Processor 18 is connected to the holding fixture of thepresent invention, via its second data input/digital output. Processor18 is connected to a display 19, via the digital output of theprocessor. An input device 20 is connected to a first data input ofprocessor 18. Sensors 21 are connected to a second data input ofprocessor 18.

Camera 17 relays received video signals to processor 18, if camera 17was activated automatically, or was activated by input device 20. Ifcamera 17 is activated, then camera 17 is drawn out of the body shell ofthe vehicle by holding fixture 16, as is represented above. According tothe methods described in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, holding fixture 16 isextended automatically, or per user input, using input device 20.

Processor 18 then moves holding fixture 16 out, when signals are emittedby sensors 21. For this purpose, sensors 21 are connected to a speedindicator, e.g. a tachometer, and to the transmission, in which case thetransmission can be a manually shiftable transmission or an automatictransmission. This connection allows sensors 21 to receive the speedsignal and the transmission-setting signal. In addition, sensors 21 havea memory device and evaluation electronics, in order to evaluate signalsfrom the speed indicator and the transmission. Therefore, processor 18implements the method of the present invention.

If more than one camera is present, then the transmission-setting signalis also used to activate the camera that is positioned in the directionof travel, as is shown in each of FIGS. 1 and 3. Processor 18 thenswitches through to display 19, accordingly. In this case, display 19 isa video screen, which can also be used by an infotainment system. Aretinal projector or a stereoscopic video screen can alternatively beused to achieve a three-dimensional representation of the vehiclesurroundings, which has a better degree of recognition and thereforeresults in better control of the vehicle. If a plurality of cameras issimultaneously used in different directions, then the signals of thesecameras can be represented on display 19 at the same time, byappropriately dividing up the display surface.

Using input device 20 which, in this case, represents haptic operatingdevices, the driver can activate the holding fixture in order to monitorthe vehicle surroundings by way of camera 17. Input device 20 has asensory system and electronics, which convert the haptic inputs intoelectrical signals that processor 18 can interpret. As an alternative,input device 20 can be realized in the form of voice input, input device20 then having a speech processor for converting voice signals, whichare converted into electrical signals by a microphone, into data thatprocessor 18 interprets as executive instructions.

The camera that is positioned in the rear end of the vehicle can also beintegrated in the emblem of the vehicle manufacturer. An example of suchan emblem is the Mercedes star. The emblem is positioned on the trunklid. If the camera is to be drawn out, then the emblem opens up, and theholding fixture of the present invention is extended.

1. A holding fixture system for a camera on a vehicle, comprising: acamera; a holding fixture for the camera, the holding fixture beingattached to a body shell of the vehicle, wherein the camera is mountedon the holding fixture, and wherein the holding fixture is configured tobe selectively drawn out of the body shell as a function of a speedsignal; and in addition to the camera, the holding fixture accommodatesa further device, the further device being one of a wiper device and atrunk handle.
 2. The holding fixture system according to claim 1,wherein: the further device is the wiper device.
 3. The holding fixturesystem according to claim 1, wherein: the further device is the trunkhandle.
 4. The holding fixture system according to claim 1, wherein: theholding fixture is attached to one of a roof edge and a trunk edge ofthe vehicle.
 5. The holding fixture system according to claim 1,wherein: the holding fixture is mounted in at least one of a front endof the vehicle, a rear end of the vehicle, and a roof of the vehicle. 6.The holding fixture system according to claim 1, wherein: the holdingfixture is integrated into a vehicle-manufacturer emblem that isattached to a trunk lid.
 7. A method for monitoring a surrounding areaof a vehicle using at least one camera, comprising the step of: drawingout of a body shell of the vehicle a holding fixture for the at leastone camera, wherein the camera is mounted on the holding fixture;wherein the at least one camera is retracted in response to a predefinedspeed value being exceeded.
 8. The method according to claim 7, furthercomprising the steps of: simultaneously extending different holdingfixtures having cameras; and causing a display of each of the cameras onthe holding fixtures to take place in a direction of travel.
 9. Themethod according to claim 7, wherein: the at least one camera isextended in response to the vehicle traveling in reverse; and the atleast one camera is retracted again in response to forward travel.
 10. Adevice for a vehicle, comprising: a first holding fixture which isretractable into a first well in a body of the vehicle and extendiblebeyond the body of the vehicle; a first camera attached to the firstholding fixture and directed to a rear of the vehicle; a second holdingfixture which is retractable into a second well in the body of thevehicle and extendible beyond the body of the vehicle; and a secondcamera attached to the second holding fixture and directed to a front ofthe vehicle; wherein the first holding fixture is extended and the firstcamera is powered when the vehicle is in reverse; and wherein the secondholding fixture is extended and the second camera is powered when thevehicle is in forward and traveling at a low rate of speed.
 11. Aholding fixture system for a camera on a vehicle, comprising: a camera;a holding fixture for the camera, the holding fixture being attached toa body shell of the vehicle, wherein the camera is mounted on theholding fixture, and wherein the holding fixture is configured to beselectively drawn out of the body shell, and wherein the holding fixtureis integrated into a vehicle-manufacturer emblem that is attached to atrunk lid, and wherein the vehicle-manufacturer emblem is configured toselectively open to enable the holding fixture to be drawn out of thebody shell, the holding fixture being extended in response to thevehicle traveling in reverse, and the holding fixture being retractedagain in response to (a) forward travel and (b) a predefined speed valuebeing exceeded.
 12. The holding fixture system according to claim 11,wherein: the holding fixture is drawn out as a function of atransmission-setting signal.
 13. The holding fixture system according toclaim 11, wherein: the holding fixture is drawn out as a function of asignal from a control element.
 14. A holding fixture system for a cameraon a vehicle, comprising: a camera; a holding fixture for the camera,the holding fixture being attached to a body shell of the vehicle,wherein the camera is mounted on the holding fixture, and wherein theholding fixture is configured to be selectively drawn out of the bodyshell as a function of a speed signal, and wherein the holding fixtureis integrated into a vehicle-manufacturer emblem that is attached to atrunk lid.